Thirteen years after the terrorist attacks of 9-11, security officers at Jackson-Medgar Wiley Evers International Airport still are pulling 40 pounds a month of prohibited items from passengers' carry-on bags.

Those passengers are lucky if all they lose are the items and time. At worst, they could face fines and criminal charges.

Firearms may be transported in checked baggage as long as they are declared to the airline, are in a locked, hard-sided carrying case and are unloaded. But they are prohibited in carry-on bags.

TSA officials warn passengers to check their bags before heading to the airport to be sure they are not carrying a gun or other prohibited item. A loaded gun inside your bag and thrown onto an X-ray belt at the security checkpoint could have tragic results, TSA said in a news release.

"Aviation security is TSA's mission and first concern. The last time a traveler may have used a certain suitcase might have been for a road trip," said David Wynn, federal security director for the state of Mississippi said in the news release. "So, thoroughly search your bags before leaving for the airport. Make sure you are not carrying a gun or other prohibited items."

In addition to criminal charges and going to jail, passengers who bring firearms to the checkpoint face civil penalties of up to $11,000.

For more information about prohibited items, go to www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/prohibited/permitted-prohibited-items.shtm.